Bishop Mark leads West Didsbury CE service of dedication

Reception classes also sing for new Lord Mayor of Manchester in special celebration to mark our new school.

Bishop Mark Davies told pupils, staff and parents at West Didsbury CE Primary School that they had achieved “great work” as he led a special service of dedication to mark our new school’s first year on Central Road.

The Bishop of Middleton was joined on Wednesday by new Lord Mayor of Manchester Carl Austin-Behan in a packed school hall, and paid tribute to all the people who had made “this incredible new school happen”.

“Our schools in the diocese are different because of faith, hope and love,” he added. “West Didsbury CE Primary will be inclusive of all, welcoming of all. This school is all about the children in front of me here, and we can open doors of opportunity for these amazing people.”

Earlier in the service, Revd Nick Bundock and Revd Ben Edson from the parish of St James & Emmanuel in Didsbury explained the journey of the school from a vision to reality. “We started to dream up this school about four years ago, a school for the children of Didsbury that could build on the heritage of 400 years of education at Didsbury CE Primary,” said Revd Bundock. “And we wanted to give the children here the best possible start in life, to love their learning and be creative. It’s so wonderful to see it come to fruition.”

Children from Didsbury CE Primary School - West Didsbury CE Primary’s sister school in the new St James & Emmanuel Academy Trust - joined with the new reception classes in a rousing version of Gary Barlow’s Sing and helped them introduce their four school houses, named after Elizabeth Gaskell, Andrew Carnegie, Alexander and Irene Ewing and Louise Da-Cocodia.

“I feel a great sense of pride, emotion and joy and what we’ve all achieved,” said headteacher Matt Whitehead. “It’s been an incredible journey and we’ve been fortunate to have had such faith and trust in this school. And the children performed so wonderfully - it has been a privilege to see. They are the future of this school and they showed it’s in great hands.”

West Didsbury CE Primary School opened in September 2015 in a brand new building on Central Road with two Reception Classes. Two further Reception classes will be added each year until it’s a thriving, 420-pupil Primary School in 2022.